Two get prison terms on control violations

Two of three parts of motion to suppress evidence overruled

Jordan Reffitt is pictured with defense attorney Richard Furnish in Highland County Common Pleas Court on Thursday.

Two defendants on Thursday were sentenced to serve prison terms following their admission to violating their community control.

Brittany J. Sherbert, 30, Groveport, admitted to making her whereabouts unknown, and to associating with people she was ordered by the court to remain away from. She was sentenced to 11 months in prison.

Sherbert was sentenced to community control and ordered to complete treatment in June 2014 for fifth-degree felony receiving stolen property. In August of this year she was continued on community control after admitting to violations, but in September a notification was filed with the court alleging new violations.

Sherbert faces more charges as on Tuesday she was indicted on two counts of fourth-degree felony trafficking in heroin in the vicinity of a school zone and two counts of fifth-degree felony heroin possession.

Also admitting to violating community control was Jordan Ray Reffitt, 27, Hillsboro. He was sentenced on two cases to a total of 18 months in prison.

In June, he pled guilty to fifth-degree felony heroin possession and fourth-degree felony aggravated trafficking in drugs. At that time he was sentenced to community control and ordered to successfully complete the STAR program.

On Thursday, he admitted to having been terminated from the residential treatment facility, which was a violation of the court’s orders.

In other hearings, two of the three parts of a motion to suppress evidence in a case involving Robert W. Sions, 58, Hillsboro, were overruled by Highland County Common Pleas Court Judge Rocky Coss.

The judge found in favor of the state in a previous motion to suppress evidence in another case involving Sions.

As previously reported by The Times-Gazette, on two separate occasions in May and July, Sions was arrested by the Highland County Sheriff’s Office following traffic stops that led to the discovery of suspected drugs.

Subsequently, Sions was indicted in August on charges of second-degree felony trafficking in heroin and possession of heroin, fourth-degree felony possession of cocaine, and fifth-degree felony possession of cocaine. He was charged in a September indictment with trafficking in and possession of heroin, both second-degree felonies; fifth-degree felony trafficking in and possession of heroin, and fifth-degree felony possession of criminal tools.

Thursday’s hearing dealt with the August indictment, and the July traffic stop that led to the charges in the indictment.

Coss found that the traffic stop was valid and that there was sufficient evidence contained in the warrant obtained following the stop to search Sions’ residence.

A third part of the motion pertained to law enforcement seizing a vehicle belonging to Sions that was not at his residence and not a part of the traffic stop. The vehicle was seized without a warrant.

The third part is something Coss said he needed “to ponder … a bit more.” He also wanted to research case law on the matter.

The judge said he would have a decision by Tuesday, which is when one of Sions’ cases is scheduled to be heard by a jury.